Srinagar, Oct 17: Chowdry Mohammad Ramzan, in a statement ahead of the upcoming Rajya Sabha election, said the contest is not just another event in the political calendar but a “defining test of our collective conscience.” According to him, the election is a battle for dignity, democracy, and the rightful voice of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, which he said has been missing for a long time.

Ramzan described the election as “far more than a contest for seats,” calling it a verdict on the policies of the BJP, which he said have systematically disempowered the people of the region, dismantled its statehood, and denied its constitutional identity. He alleged that under the pretext of development, deceit was sold, and under the banner of democracy, authoritarianism was practiced.

Since 2019, he said, Jammu and Kashmir has been treated not as a partner in the Union of India, but as “an experiment ground ruled by bureaucracy, robbed of representation and stripped of dignity.” He pointed to the Assembly elections as a reflection of the people’s sentiment, describing them as a resounding rejection of divisive politics, false promises, and manufactured narratives.

Ramzan urged citizens to use the Rajya Sabha election to translate public sentiment into parliamentary strength, bringing the people’s voice back to the national forum. “This election is about reclaiming what was taken—our statehood, our dignity, our special status, our rights, and our place in the democratic fabric of India,” he said, adding that Jammu and Kashmir will be remembered “not for silence, but for resilience.”

He emphasized that democracy should be about dialogue, not domination, and called upon all democratic and secular forces to unite, setting aside political differences to defend the principles and “the very soul of India’s democracy.” He described the struggle as a “moral movement for collective survival,” stating that it is “not about positions in the Rajya Sabha, but about the position of Jammu and Kashmir within the soul of the Indian Republic.”

Anantnag, Oct 17: A 33-year-old man from south Kashmir’s Anantnag district sustained critical injuries after his motorcycle collided with a dumper at Bijbehara Chowk. The injured has been identified as Sabzar Ahmad Wani, son of Muhammad Maqbool Wani, a resident of Dailgam Anantnag.

According to police and eyewitness accounts, the accident occurred when Sabzar was riding his motorcycle and collided with a dumper near the busy Bijbehara Chowk. The impact of the collision left him severely injured, following which he was immediately rushed to Government Medical College (GMC) Anantnag by locals and police personnel.

Medical officials at GMC Anantnag said the injured youth was provided first aid and later referred to SKIMS Soura in Srinagar for advanced treatment due to the seriousness of his injuries. As per hospital sources, his condition is stated to be critical.

An attendant accompanying the the victim was riding carefully, but a dumper suddenly came in front of his bike at the chowk. He suffered serious head and leg injuries,” the attendant told the news agency Kashmir News Trust.

Police have taken cognizance of the incident and initiated an investigation into the circumstances leading to the collision. The dumper involved in the accident has been seized. [KNT]

Srinagar, Oct 17: The Department of Environmental Science, Disaster Risk Reduction Club (DRRC), NCC and NSS Units of AAAM Degree College, Bemina, Srinagar in collaboration with IQAC and RedR India, organised a one-day programme on “Disaster Resilience: Focusing on Opportunities and Challenges” at the College Auditorium.

As per a press release, the event aimed to enhance understanding of disaster preparedness, mitigation and community resilience, particularly in view of the increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters worldwide. The programme highlighted the need to develop sustainable strategies for risk reduction and to strengthen both institutional and community-level preparedness.

The Principal of the College Prof. (Dr.) Mudasir Afshan, in her inaugural address, emphasized the importance of building disaster-resilient communities through education, awareness and active youth participation.

In his address,Chief Guest of the event, the Vice Chancellor Cluster University Srinagar Prof. (Dr.) Mohammad Mobinappreciated the initiative of the college and underlined the relevance of resilience-building programmes in higher education institutions. He encouraged students to undergo training that enables them to serve as volunteers and first responders in times of crisis.

The Registrar,Cluster University Srinagar Prof. (Dr.) Syed Wilayat Hussain Rizvi in his remarks, shared valuable experiences from past disasters such as floods, earthquakes and evacuation operations, stressing the importance of preparedness and coordination in disaster response.

The lead lecture by Er. Aamir Ali Member RedR India and former Director Disaster Management, Kashmirprovided an overview of the role of RedR India in disaster management and capacity building across the country. He emphasised that students should be trained so that they can act as volunteers and helpful to the society.

A technical session and training programme was conducted by the Civil Defence team of personnel focused on identifying local vulnerabilities, best practices in disaster preparedness, and innovative approaches for risk mitigation. A training session on CPR was conducted by Dr. Syed Anayat Hussain, PTI of AAAM Degree College Bemina Srinagar. Students and volunteers from DRR, NCC and NSS took active part in the hands-on training and discussions, highlighting the significance of proactive measures and informed decision-making during emergencies.

The Hon’ble Vice Chancellor, on this occasion, presented the “Gold” Accredited Certificate to the Principal of the College in recognition of the institution’s recent accreditation by Climate Reality Project India.

This One-Day Programme marked a significant milestone as the first such event organised by AAAM Degree College, Bemina, Srinagar which has also taken the lead in establishing a Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Club within the institution.

The event concluded with a Vote of Thanks presented by Dr. Riffat Basharat, Member, DRR Club. The programme was coordinated by Dr. Musharaf Rehman, co-ordinator IQAC.

Srinagar, Oct 16: In Jammu and Kashmir, roads turn into obituaries.

Behind the postcard views of the region’s highways lies a landscape of loss, of beauty and danger travelling side by side, where mountains claim more lives than they connect.

Every curve on the road hides stories of speed, loss, and neglect.

The design flaws hidden in every bend also carry fear of death among the families, drivers, and rescuers.

The Srinagar-Jammu National Highway (NH-44), the romanticised gateway to paradise, has proven to be a hellish road with its deadly mix of heavy traffic, unreliable road conditions, landslides, and human error.

The 270-km stretch is the major link to Kashmir, and together with other link roads along its course, is a major contributor to the staggering deaths due to road traffic accidents in J&K.

The Road Traffic Accident (RTA) mortality rate in J&K is 16.6 deaths per 1 lakh population.

It starkly exceeds the national average of 11 deaths per 1 lakh.

RTAs are the leading cause of Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lost in J&K, outweighing other health burdens.

Between January and October 2024, J&K recorded 4990 accidents that resulted in 703 deaths and 6820 injuries, as per official data.

This trend extends into 2025.

Partial data up to June suggests continued spikes.

Given the trends, it is an estimated 6000 accidents with fatalities nearing 800.

The NH-44 is prone to fatal crashes in districts like Ramban and Udhampur.

However, the data is not separated for the highway and other roads in the districts along the highway.

In the first half of 2024, Udhampur saw 228 accidents, 47 deaths, and 314 injuries, while Ramban reported 129 accidents, 33 deaths, and 160 injuries.

In 2025, so far, the highway has seen devastating accidents.

On May 4, a crash near Battery Cheshma in Ramban claimed the lives of three Army personnel.

Last month, two policemen died in a crash at Tengan, Lasjan.

Earlier, a mother-son duo died in a collision near Tikrri, Udhampur.

This month, a cab overturned in Battal Ballian, Udhampur, leaving one dead and four injured.

Over the three quarters of 2024, districts along the highway route had horrifying stats.

Jammu district had 807 accidents, 96 deaths in the first nine months of 2024.

Anantnag had 254 accidents with 35 deaths; Srinagar recorded 362 accidents and 36 deaths.

Full-year data for Srinagar shows 57 people lost life in accidents in 2024.

Although, J&K is yet to come up with a detailed report on accident-prone spots and the causes of accidents, preliminary data suggests over-speeding is the reason for accidents 40 percent of the time.

Then comes reckless driving, and engineering flaws like single-lane sections prone to head-on collisions.

In J&K, rural areas, particularly the roads along the National Highway comprise 69 percent of accidents.

The Chenab Valley is another “silent death trap.”

The three districts, Doda, Kishtwar, and Ramban accounted for 20 percent of J&K’s road fatalities, despite having a sparse population.

From 2019 to October 2024, Chenab Valley recorded 852 deaths.

Ravine plunges are the primary type of accident along the narrow, treacherous roads.

The National Highways, including NH-244, see the maximum number of casualties.

Yet, these hardly make headlines.

Between 2019 and 2024, 4899 lives were lost on roads in J&K and 40,065 people injured.

Many of those injured ended up with lifelong disabilities.

The J&K Road Safety Policy, 2025, notified in March this year has a lofty aim to reduce accidents and fatalities by 50 percent by the year 2030.

This can be achieved through better enforcement of traffic rules, better equipped and accessible trauma centres, and infrastructure upgrades of roads.

However, policy makers believe that with 22.66 lakh vehicles, and counting, the task is daunting but not impossible.

A regular commuter on the highway, Muhammad Ishfaq, said that with winters approaching, and already dilapidated roads going to get worse, would these highways lead to heaven or hell?

“For many, the answer is tragically clear,” he said.